It has been a few weeks since the HTC Touch.B’s first pictures came out.
Many immediately assumed that the device was HTC’s latest Android smart phone; but a closer inspection of the images showed that it the device’s button lay-out was not suited for the Google OS. Images showed that the face of the device lacked the much needed back button.
It was not soon after that later reports showed that the HTC Touch.B would be using the Brew operating system. A bit of an odd choice for HTC really; the company has its roots with Microsoft and has a long line of successful WinMo phones and currently, they are pretty closely tied with Google, as HTC is taking a key role in the release of many significant Android devices such as the Nexus One.
So what is HTC doing with an old school OS like the Brew?
It appears that the Brew will be HTC’s key to the GSM market. While their high-end 3G devices make use of WinMo and Google Android; the Touch.B and the Brew platform is targeting a completely different market.
The device has now been renamed into the HTC Smart and it will come with full GSM/EDGE/GPRS support as well as a nifty little 2.8 inch touch screen, 256 MB, support for microSD cards and a 3 (or 2 according to some reports) mega pixel camera (from the images, no LED flash support). HTC has been keeping most of the other details under wraps, so far, no word has been given on the approximate price or launch of the device.
We do expect the HTC Smart to be a little more budget friendly, given the initial specs and capabilities. It is likely that the phone will be released alongside the HTC Bravo and HTC Photon as a GSM alternative to the more expensive 3G phones.
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